The 16th amendment of the constitution that empowered the parliament to remove a Supreme Court judge for incapacity or misconducts has made the charter of the republic free from the black spot and reestablished the real independence of the judiciary, a High Court judge has observed in a part of its full verdict.

The part of the verdict delivered by Justice Md Ashraful Kamal, the junior judge of a three-member bench of the HC, which dealt with the case, was released yesterday.

Earlier on May 5, following a writ petition, majority of the HC bench had declared the 16th constitutional amendment illegal, unconstitutional and against the principles of the separation of state powers and the independence of the judiciary.

On August 11, two judges of the three-member HC bench, Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Haque, released their part of the full verdict declaring the constitution's 16th amendment illegal and unconstitutional.

Justice Md Ashraful Kamal had then disagreed with Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Haque, and declared the 16th amendment legal and constitutional.

The amendment brought to the constitution in 2014 abolished the chief justice-led Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), which was introduced in 1978.

Justice Ashraful Kamal said Article 96 regarding the provision of the SJC, had been illegally incorporated in the constitution under the unitary desire of "illegal" president Maj Gen Ziaur Rahman.

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"On the other hand, the Article 96 involving the provision of removal of the [Supreme Court| judge through the parliament had been included in the original constitution by members of the constitution framing committee and 403 members of the National Assembly under the leadership of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman," he said.

The provision of the Supreme Judicial

Council formulated by the "military junta" is against the independence of the judiciary, unconstitutional and contrary to the basic structures of the constitution, the judge said.

Writ petitioners' lawyer Manzill Murshid told The Daily Star that the judgement given by Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque will remain in force until the apex court passes any stay orderon the HC verdict.